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| Iraq |
| Hovering spy plane helps rout Iraqis |
| 2003-04-03 |
| Edited for length: A new spy plane that can hover for hours and give commanders a prime TV view of the battlefield has proved crucial in this week's rapid coalition rout of the Iraqi Republican Guard. As part of the United States' ultramodern air war, the Global Hawk unmanned aerial vehicle is being launched from a Persian Gulf nation and placed over the war zone south of Baghdad. The asset gives war commanders something none has ever had in a major land battle. Global Hawk sends continuous real-time pictures of Republican Guard tanks, troops and artillery to the Combined Air Operations Center (CAOC) at Prince Sultan Air Base, Saudi Arabia. God's eye view From there, air planners immediately relay the Iraqi locations to tactical fighter pilots, who fly within designated "kill boxes," armed with precision-guided munitions. The data also go to the Army's 5th Corps inside Iraq, commanded by Lt. Gen. William Wallace. "Global Hawk played an extraordinarily important role in focusing precision air power," an Air Force source said yesterday, estimating that it quickened the Republican Guard's defeat by several days and is responsible for scores of tank kills. The 44-foot-long, high-flying drone is one weapon in an air-war strategy that directs an overpowering barrage at Iraqi forces every day. The U.S.-led coalition also is using the smaller Predator drone to penetrate Baghdad airspace and launch precision-guided missiles, while outside the city laser- and satellite-guided bombs are decimating the Republican Guard. In a March 25 strike, the unmanned Predator fired a laser-guided Hellfire missile at a TV satellite dish in downtown Baghdad, as part of the U.S. Air Force's dogged effort to take Iraq's state-run television off the air. In the Predator flight, air planners decided its 100-pound Hellfire is better suited for some downtown targets than a 1,000-pound-warhead Tomahawk cruise missile or a one-ton satellite guided bomb. The TV dish sat near a school and other civilian buildings. "A 2,000-pound bomb probably would have caused more damage, so the Predator took it out," said a senior allied officer, who asked not to be identified. "We really do worry about collateral damage. We target and we choose the weapons in a very deliberate way. You try never, never to use any more weapon than you actually need." The Air Force also has launched the Predator to strike mobile air-defense batteries and to use lasers to designate targets for piloted aircraft. The CIA is operating its own fleet of Predators to track Iraqi leaders, including Saddam. If it moves, it dies. |
| Posted by:Steve |